BTRC to probe telcos' illegal transmission business

Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has moved to investigate illegal transmission business of mobile phone operators following unearthing of the unauthorized involvement of Grameenphone.

The regulator has formed a four-member committee to investigate the illegal network transmission business by the mobile phone companies, said officials.

Talking to BSS, BTRC Chairman Dr Shahjahan Mahmood said: "The committee would physically inspect the infrastructure of mobile phone operators and transmission services they are offering to their clients."

"No operator would be allowed to run business beyond law," he added.

The committee will submit a comprehensive report on the matter in the shortest possible time,added Dr Mahmood.

Officials said the decision came after they found Grameenphone's involvement of providing broadband internet service through own transmission network to Sonali Bank violating rules through its sister concern Go Broadband.

For this, BTRC already fined Grameenphone Taka 30 crore to be paid by November 16.

The committee will be led by director of licensing M A Taleb Hossen while three other members are from engineering, operation and legal divisions.

Earlier on September 18, the regulator issued a directive saying that one mobile phone operator will not be allowed to provide fibre optic connectivity to another telecom operator.

"The telecom operators have to take all types of fibre optic connectivity, both primary and secondary, from the National Telecommunication Transmission Network (NTTN) operators," read the directive.

BTRC officials said the mobile phone operators have misused the provision of previous permission that allowed them to provide secondary fibre connection.

They said BTRC has found that the mobile operators built their own transmission network violating the rules.

According to BTRC, currently there are 54,228 kilometers of fibre optic cable in Bangladesh, of which the NTTN operators have the major share.

Summit Communication has 20,670km, Fiber@ Home 15,468km, BTCL 4,935km, PGCB 4,402km and Bangladesh Railway has 2,105km.

Besides, among the mobile phone operators, Banglalink has 3,001km, Grameenphone has 2,490km and the other operators have 1,157km fiber optic.

Source: BSS